


Broken

by AjSpammin



Category: Voltron: Legendary Defender
Genre: Alternate Universe, Blood and Injury, Blood and Violence, Champion Lance Au, Emotional Hurt/Comfort, Except Lance is still the blue paladin and Shiro is still the black paladin, Hurt/Comfort, I'm not sorry, Lance and Shiro pretty much switch places, Langst, M/M, Scarred Lance, Shance - Relationship - Freeform
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2017-05-27
Updated: 2017-05-27
Packaged: 2018-11-02 10:41:44
Rating: Mature
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings, Graphic Depictions Of Violence
Chapters: 1
Words: 7,472
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/10942839
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/AjSpammin/pseuds/AjSpammin
Summary: Lance ends up being the one who is assigned to be the pilot for the Kerberos mission. Things go wrong.





	Broken

**Author's Note:**

> I got permission to write for this from punkflunked on tumblr, go check them out!
> 
> okay, so this plays out how episode one did (not the whole episode), but there are changes in dialogue and actions. There will be repeated statements that had been said in episode one, however.

A laugh rumbled up from the boy's chest, bright blue eyes sparkling with amusement. Lance McClain was just an 18 year old who had a fascination with space. He had always wanted to explore the unexplored, see what was hiding beyond the reach humans could get to so far. Yeah, that seemed pretty cheesy, but it had been a dream of the teen's since he was but a wee boy. When he had gotten accepted into the Galaxy Garrison, he was excited beyond belief. His parents were worried, which was understandable, but they supported him every step of the way. He didn't waste time as he quickly packed his things, said goodbye to his family, and left for the garrison. It hadn't taken long for him to make a few good friends, who's names will be discussed later on. He was close to them and couldn't ask for better friends. The teen ended up being one of the best pilots in the garrison, his only completion being Takashi Shirogane and Keith Kogane.

"Okay, but on a more serious matter, who do you think is going to end up piloting the Kerberos mission?" A voice stated, laying back on the not too comfortable, but not hard beds the garrison provided. Lance looked over at his best friend, a deep chuckle rumbling from his chest.

"Honestly, probably Shiro. That guy's an amazing pilot."

"Well, so are you, buddy."

"Hunk, please, Shiro could out pilot me any day."

Hunk, Lance's best friend since he arrived at the garrison. The other teen was the same age as Lance, yet he had so much engineering shit shoved into his brain that it shocked Lance sometimes. The two would always end up talking for hours on nights they had trouble sleeping, their conversations ranging from normal to odd.

"Well, what if they chose you anyways?" Hunk questioned, lulling his head to the side slightly to look over at his best friend. Lance hummed in the back of his throat before looking at him with a grin.

"Wish me luck then, my man." Despite how calm about it he seemed on the outside, his mind was racing. If Lance did get chosen for this mission, it would be the highlight of his career. If everything went right. But if something went wrong, it would be the downfall of his career. He didn't want to risk losing the Holts, whom he already knew were assigned to the mission.

"Hey now, you're over thinking again, aren't you? Stop it, stop it right now." Lance laughed at his friend's statement, grinning at the larger man with a twinkle in captivating blue orbs.

"Sorry, sorry."

~~**\-----** ~~

Keith's eyes caught Lance's when the slightly older teen entered the room where the pilot for Kerberos was going to be announced. The two held each other's gaze for a long moment as if they were trying to read each other's minds before they were snapped out of it when a large, built form stepped between them.

"Alright you two, stop trying to kill each other with your eyes." The amused voice of Shiro states as he looks between the two, a small smile curling his lips.

Shiro was another one of the people Lance had actually managed to become friends with his first week or so at the garrison. He had been intimidated by the man at first, he was terrifying, really. Large, built, and intimidating if you didn't know him. It didn't take long for Lance to get to know him, though, and he quickly learned Shiro was just a big ol' teddy bear.

His relationship with Keith was...well, it was questionable. Sometimes the two got along, other times they were at each other's throats. No one really knows why they're the way they are, not even they do, but Shiro has been trying to get them to become better friends. Key word: trying.

Lance just huffed quietly, rolling his eyes slightly before looking off to the side, arms crossing over his chest. Before he could get anything out, an actual squeak left the teen when he felt two large hands grab his sides, quickly jumping away and glaring at the person behind him. Hunk laughed, a large grin spread across his face as his arms wrapped around his own stomach while he tried to contain the laughter. If the two behind him were snickering, Lance was going to ignore it.

"God, I hate you."

"No you don't."

Lance just huffed before smiling slightly, relaxing into Hunk's larger form when he felt his arm go around his shoulders. The four talked as people poured into the room, a relaxed feeling falling over him. The room itself seemed relaxed until a familiar figure stepped onto the stage. Iverson ordered silence, his poker face set. Lance moved out of Hunk's hold to instead nudge Shiro slightly, grinning up at him when he looked at him. 

"Good luck in space, Shiro." He teased, ignoring Iverson as he spoke. Shiro snorted under his breath and nudged Lance back, smiling at his.

"Oh shut up." The two were murmuring to each other when Iverson cleared his throat. He glanced down at the paper in his hands and was silent for a long moment before looking back out at the ground of students.

"The pilot of the Kerberos mission is.." Lance nudged Shiro, grinning at his snort. "Lance McClain." 

"Congrats, bu-" Wait what? Shiro must have been able to see the shock on Lance's face because he couldn't hold back a laugh, nudging the younger male slightly.

"Get up there, tiger."

Lance sat in place for a long moment before nodding slightly and slowly moving up to the stage. He blocked out the voices cheering for him, eyes unfocused as he stared down at the ground. He was going to Kerberos? He was going to Kerberos.. 

He was going to Kerberos! 

Lance didn't stop the whoop that left him as he beamed. 

He was going to space!

~~**\-----** ~~

"You're going to be careful, right?"

"Yes, Hunk."

"You're going to come back to me, right?"

Lance smiled softly when Hunk's voice cracked and he moved to wrap his arms around him, holding his friend close. Once he pulled away, he beamed up at his friend.

"I will, I promise." Lance's grin grew when Hunk smiled widely down at him. He opened his mouth to say something when two hands grabbed his shoulders and spun him around. Lance stared down at Keith, a brow quirking slightly. Keith silently stared at him before wrapping his arms around him in a tight hug.

"Don't do anything stupid." He murmured into his neck before breaking the hug and moving to stand beside Hunk. Lance was stunned for a moment before looking at Keith and grinning down at him. Turning back around, he smiled up at the man in front of him.

"You'll take care of them for me, won't you?" He laughed when Shiro wrapped his arms around him, not hesitating to return it.

"Of course I will." Shiro pulled away from the hug, smiling down at the younger teen. Lance smiled at him and paused when he heard Matt call for him. Looking at him, he was quiet for a moment before looking back at Shiro. Without hesitation, he leaned up to press their lips together in a short kiss. Shiro hadn't even had time to react because Lance was pulling away and running to the shuttle where Matt and Mr. Holt were waiting for him. He looked over his shoulder slightly and grinned back at his friends as well as a very flustered Shiro. Waving, he turned back around.

"See you when I get back!"

~~**\-----** ~~

"Easy, son. This ice is delicate."

Holt's voice came in through, snapping Lance out of his little daze. He turned his head to look at the Holts, a small, fond smile finding its way onto his face. On the way to Kerberos, he learned the father and son duo were actually very fun people to be around.

"Amazing...isn't this exciting, Lance?" Matt looked over his shoulder at the other teen as he slowly pulled the ice out of the machine. Lance chuckled quietly and shook his head slightly, tilting his head back. 

"I think I like the view a little more." He hummed, snickering quietly at the huff that left his friend.

"This is history in the making. Not only have we traveled farther than any human ever has, but this ice could hold microscopic clues about the existence of life outside Earth." Lance looked at Holt when he spoke, smiling slightly at the fascinated look on the older man's face.

"Think of it, Dad. We could use those clues to become the first people to meet aliens." Matt looked back at the ice, hands still steadily pulling the ice out.

"My life's work would be complete.." There was a far away look on his face as Holt looked away slightly. When Lance parted his lips to speak, the moon seemed to begin shaking.

"What is that? Seismic activity?" Holt's voice echoed as they looked around. Lance slowly looked up and felt himself pale.

"We need to go." Holt seemed to ignore Lance's words as he took a step forward after turning around.

"What...What is that? It can't be.." He sounded awed and Lance let out an annoyed sound. He saw something glowing at the head of the ship and a sinking feeling coiled in his gut.He grabbed the older male's wrist and tugged on it.

"Come on!" He yelled out, relieved when the man snapped out of his little trance. The three men began to run back to their shuttle when the bright light engulfed them. Lance didn't quite remember what happened next, all he remembered was his friends' yelling. 

~~**\-----** ~~

"-kon, we were scouting System X-9-Y as ordered when we found these primitive scientists. I don't think they know anything useful." Lance was slowly beginning to be able to hear the voices around him. He brows furrowed, eyes still squeezed shut tightly. The lights from the room burned his eyes even through his eyelids.

"Take them back to the main fleet for interrogation. The druids will find out what they know." His eyes snapped open at the mention of interrogation, panic pooling in his gut. That's when he paused, staring at the figures around him. Either he was surrounded by aliens or furries, and god was he hoping it was the latter.

"Hey, uh, as much fun as that sounds, I'd rather not have someone poke around upstairs." The figure that was in front of him turned to look at him and he put on that confident mask, grinning. There was a silence before one of the guard looking things shuffled behind him. Opening his mouth to speak, he was cut off by the end of a gun slamming into the back of his skull.

**~~\-----~~ **

Its been a while since Lance was captures by these aliens, whom he learned were called Galras. Despite his fairly lanky form, he was forced to fight. He was forced to _kill_. If he refused, they'd threaten Matt or Mr. Holt. The last thing the teen wanted was for those two to be hurt because of him. As time went on, he grew stronger, but his mind grew weaker.

During the current fight, the other alien he was currently fighting had gotten a hit in. He could feel the warmth of blood trailing down from the wound across his nose, was it bad he was getting used to the pain? He raised a hand to touch it and hissed, pulling it away to look at the crimson liquid. Looking at the larger creature, he scoffed, eyes narrowing. 

"Ruining a man's face like this is punishable by death, didn't you know?" He had learned to hide his pain behind humor. Often, the humor ended up darker than he intended, but it was a distraction from the pain. The alien just growled before charging at him. Lance was grateful for his flexible form, easily able to dodge the large fist that was coming for him. He ran to the blade he was being forced to fight with and swung around. He jumped up when the alien's fist swung towards him and hummed. He brought the blade up and down into the large hand that was at his feet. The pained cry the alien let out made his stomach churn, but he had to keep fighting. He had to make sure the Holts weren't hurt because of him.

Ripping the blade out, he slashed it across the chest of the large alien, wincing at the bright colored blood that came from the wounds.

Another nightmare added to the list.

~~**\-----** ~~

It's been a week or so since that fight and the teen had ended up all but losing his arm during another fight that followed far too soon after it. It hurt, god had it hurt, but the Galra had plans.

When he had awoken a few days later, he hurt so fucking bad. Lifting his arm slowly, his stomach churned at the robotic hand his dull blue eyes landed on. Panic coursed through his veins, his chest heaving. 

Once again, something had been taken from him.

~~**\-----** ~~

Hunk stared over Pidge's shoulder, tired eyes watching as they typed away on their computer. He had followed Pidge out one night after seeing them constantly sneak out and ended up staying with them, speaking only when spoken to. The two were in the middle of a conversation about the Kerberos mission when silent footsteps approached from behind.

"You know, I could tell Iverson that you two have been sneaking out." Shiro's voice cut through the air. Both younger teens jumped, spinning around to face him with wide eyes. Dark eyes twinkled with amusement and he smiled down at them, tilting his head. "Though I won't." Hunk let out a heavy breath and tilted his head back before shooting a more playful glare at the older male.

"Don't sneak up on us like that." He murmured, smiling slightly when the other smiled. Ever since the Kerberos mission had gone south and the three on the mission weren't found, the three friends had been more distant for a while. So far, Hunk and Shiro seemed to have relaxed more, trying to keep their minds on more positive things. Keith, however, was still furious. He believed the crew was still alive out there somewhere and when Pidge had been introduced into the picture, this thought only grew. The two would talk about Lance and the Holts as if they were still alive and sometimes it really hurt Hunk and Shiro, but they had given up on trying to get them to stop.

"Sorry, sorry. What are you two doing anyways?" Shiro questioned, approaching the two and crouching down behind Pidge to look at their computer. They seemed to fidget, glancing at Hunk before looking back at Shiro.

"Nothing, just, uh, looking at the stars-"

"Pidge, don't lie to me."

Shiro seemed to always be able to get them to listen when he used his commander voice. The younger teen sighed heavily and looked at the computer before back at Shiro.

"Fine. The world as you know it is about to change. The Kerberos Mission wasn't lost because of some malfunction or crew mistake." Shiro held back a groan at Pidge's statement, looking away slightly. Of course. When he didn't say anything, they continued. "So, I've been scanning the system and picking up alien radio chatter-"

"Alien?"

"Yes, now shush." They murmured, holding a hand up for Shiro to be silent. "They keep repeating one word, "Voltron." And tonight, it's going crazier than I have ever heard it." Shiro quirked a brow as he stared down at them before sighing softly. He was going to regret this.

"Just how-" The eldest of the three was cut off by a voice coming over the loudspeaker.

"Attention, students. This is not a drill. We are on lockdown! Security situation Zulu Niner. Repeat: all students are to remain in barracks until further notice." A quiet curse passed Shiro's lips and he quickly stood. He was about to say something when something in the sky caught his attention.

"What's going on? Is that a meteor? A very, very big meteor?" Hunk stole the words right out of Shiro's mouth, eyes wide as he stared at the shape as well. Pidge's gasp caught Shiro's attention and he looked down to see them staring through binoculars.

"It's a ship!" They gasped, eyes wide.

"Give me that." Shiro ordered, holding a hand out for the binoculars. Pidge handed them to him and he looked through them, eyes widening as he stared at the shape. It was indeed a ship and it was definitely not one of theirs.

"It's one of theirs...We need to go see that ship!" Pidge quickly stood, gathering their equipment together and looking at Shiro with hopeful eyes. Hunk quickly shook his head, eyes wide. Sadly for Hunk, Shiro was curious as well.

"Let's go." He nodded to Pidge and quickly began to go in the direction the ship was heading. Hunk's complaint sounded behind them, but he followed the two anyways. Sadly, others got there before them, having already set up a little so called base camp. They set up their own little station on a distant cliff, eyeing the station.

"There's so many guards..." Shiro murmured as he watched the people surrounding the station walk around, weapons in hand. "There's no way we can get in there."

"Aw, man. Yeah, yeah, I guess there's nothing to do but head back to the barracks, right?" When Hunk attempted to leave, Pidge grabbed his shirt and pulled him back, their gaze glued to their computer.

"Not so fast, Hunk. They set up a camera in there and I grabbed its feed. Look!"

 

Lance's chest was heaving as he struggled on the table he was strapped to, eyes wide and panicked. He let out an almost animalistic growl when Iverson neared him, aggressively trying to free himself. Lance looked so...different. There was a tuff of white hair in the front, most likely happening from stress, a scar going across his nose. His right arm was replaced with a robotic prosthetic, though the suit he was wearing made it difficult to see just how far up his arm it went.

"Let me go, Iverson!" He barked, his voice more gruff than it had been before the Kerberos mission.

"Calm down, Lance. We just need to keep you quarantined until we run some tests." Iverson's voice sounded from one of the hazmat suits. Lance tried to move his arms, glaring at the older man.

"You don't understand, you old bastard! Those things destroy worlds, I have to warn-" A grunt left him and he clenched his fists, shouting out. "The aliens are coming!"

 

"Lance.." The named passed Shiro's lips in a breath, eyes wide as he stared at the screen. He looked at Hunk and saw the larger male trembling, a hand covering his mouth. Brown orbs were glossed over with unshed tears as he took in the sight of his best friend on the screen.

"Where's the rest of the crew..?" Pidge murmured, brows furrowing slightly.

 

"Do you know how long you've been gone?" Iverson's voice came from the live camera feed, pulling their attention back to the screen.

"Does it matter?! Iverson, you need to let me go, those damn aliens are coming here for a weapon, they're probably on the way! We need to get Voltron before them!" He yelled, struggling in his restraints. A gasped murmur of 'Voltron' left Pidge before another voice joined Iverson's.

"Sir, take a look at this. It appears his arm has been replaced with a cyborg prosthetic." Lance clenched his fists, his hands shaking slightly.

"Put him under until we know what that thing can do." Lance's eyes widened at Iverson's order and he struggled in the restraints.

"No, don't you dare, Iverson, you don't know what you're doing, there's no time for this, _Iverson_!"

 

"They didn't ask about the rest of the crew." Pidge stated, eyes furrowed with a frustrated glint in their eyes.

"We have to get him out of there." Hunk quickly spoke up, his mouth moving faster than his mind.

"Hunk, I know how you feel, but we need to think this through. We can't just go in there without some kind of distraction, there's too many guards." Shiro stated, standing up and looking down at the station. The voices had gone quiet so he was assuming they succeeded with getting Lance still enough to put him under sedation. When Pidge went to speak, explosions sounded, making the three of them jump. They watched as the Garrison guards rushed towards the explosions.

"Is that the aliens-?!" Hunk hesitated between looking at the two beside him. "I-Is that the aliens? Are they here? They got here so quick!"

"No, those explosions were a distraction, for him. The Garrison's headed toward the blast, and he's sneaking in from the other side." Pidge stated, pointing towards a vehicle with someone hiding it behind a large rock. Shiro held his hand out and Pidge handed their binoculars to him so he could look through them. Dark grey orbs widened at the sight of a familiar red jacket.

"Keith-" He breathed out, lowering the binoculars.

"Whoa, wait, Keith?" Hunk snatched the binoculars to see Keith running towards the station and he scowled. "Oh no you don't! I'm saving Lance!" He yelled, giving the binoculars back to Pidge. They sighed heavily and gathered their things together before following Hunk and Shiro, whom had already started down to the station.

**~~\-----~~ **

~~~~It wasn't difficult for Keith to take out the people inside, jumping over one of the unconscious bodies. He approached the unconscious man on the table and turned his face towards him, the person letting out a low groan, before his eyes widened slightly, heart stopping in his chest for a moment.

"Lance..?" He murmured, staying quiet for a moment before quickly cutting the restraints. He was careful as he pulled the larger male off the table, grunting at the weight of the unconscious teen. "Wow, you're heavier than I last remember.." He murmured, adjusting his hold before pausing when the doors opened.

"Keith, give me Lance." Hunk's voice met his ears and he let out a heavy sigh. 

"Hunk, we don't-"

"Keith, do you really want to argue with me right now?" Hunk shot a short glare down at the smaller male, relief coursing through him when the other sighed and slowly passed Lance on to the larger male. Hunk didn't even hesitate to scoop Lance up in a princess hold, eyes staring at his best friend with concern coursing through his gut.

"Buddy.." He murmured, eyes burning with tears he was refusing to shed. Shiro came up behind him and placed a gentle hand on his shoulder before looking at Lance, a pained feeling tugged at his heart. Feelings he had tried to push down slowly bubbled up once more and he clenched his fist.

"Guys, as sweet as this little scene is, they're coming back. We need to get out of here!" Pidge's urgent voice cut in, catching the three in front of them's attention. Keith frowned slightly before quickly heading for the door. 

"Alright, come on!" The group ran to the hovercraft Keith had arrive in.

"How are we all going to fit on this?!" A look of panic flickered across Pidge's face, though it was gone when they were picked up by Shiro and put on the machine. 

"Just make sure you hold on tight, don't let Lance go." Keith yelled back to Hunk. Said male just nodded before getting on the back of the machine, one arm holding Lance close to his larger form, the other hand holding onto the edge of the machine.

"Let's go!" Shiro ordered, looking at the vehicles rushing towards them.

~~**\-----** ~~

Lance's form twisted and turned on the couch he had been laid down on, brows furrowed. There was an almost panicked look on his face as he clenched and unclenched his fists. The others shared concerned glances before Keith sighed quietly.

"I'll go get him some clothes he can change into." He murmured before leaving the room. The others didn't reply at first before Hunk murmured a quiet 'thank you', not looking away from his best friend's unconscious form.

"What...What did they do to him..?" Hunk looked at Shiro slightly, both sharing a concerned look. Shiro went to reply when Lance all but screamed, the sound bloodcurdling and sending chills through everyone in the room's bodies. The teen was sitting upright, hands holding his head as he tried to breath, rapid words leaving him, though none of them were in a language the group knew. 

"No me toques, deja de tocarme, por favor déjame en paz-" His voice was gruff and loud as he continued to yell words in his native tongue. He wasn't aware of the people around him until he felt hands touching him. He didn't think his actions through and swung, struggling when he felt a hand quickly wrap around his wrist.

"Lance, Lance, listen, buddy, it's me, Hunk. Come on, listen to my voice." Hunk kept his voice gentle, loosening his hold on Lance's wrist slightly and raising his other hand to gently cup his friend's face. Lance's gaze snapped upwards, once bright blue orbs were now dull and seemed almost void of life. He was silent before a broken sound left him and he pretty much flung himself into Hunk's hold, arms wrapping tightly around his neck. Hunk wrapped his arms around Lance's smaller form, his gaze going to Shiro for a short moment as he tried to calm his panicking friend. "Shh, it's okay, I got you, buddy.." Silence fell over them as Lance slowly calmed down, eyes squeezed shut. Keith had come back at some point, eyeing the scene before him before approaching.

"Lance." Keith's voice made Lance jump slightly and tense, sitting there in Hunk's hold for a moment before slowly looking at him. His eyes landing on the clothes in his frenemy's hands and a small smile found its way onto his face.

"Thanks, Keith.." He murmured, slowly worming his way out of Hunk's hold and moving to take the clothing. He smiled at the smaller male before moving to different room to change into the clothing Keith had gotten him to wear. The teen was careful as he stripped out of the clothing he had been wearing, setting the clothes Keith had given him down on the nearest flat surface. He smiled slightly at the sight of familiar clothing when he unfolded the shirt Keith had given him. He slipped the white shirt with long blue sleeves on once he had the tight outfit he was forced to wear when he was the Galra's prisoner off, tossing it to the floor. He slipped his jeans on and the sneakers that had been given to him, trying to ignore the sight of scars littering his more built form. He had gained a good bit of muscle during his times in the arena and scars stood out like bright pain on his darker skin. Slipping his jacket on, Lance moved to grab the Galra clothing before heading back out to the main room. He paused when they stopped talk to look at him before he cleared his throat. "Do any of you have a lighter?" He questioned, cocking his head to the side slightly. When he got not response, he let out a heavy sigh and moved to the door.

"Lance, where are you going?" Hunk's voice cut through the thick tension in the air and he looked back at him slightly.

"I'm just going outside. I need some fresh air." Lance murmured, waving a dismissive hand before walking out the door. He pretty much threw the old clothing onto the ground before turning his head to look at the rising sun, eyes softening.

"It's beautiful, isn't it?" Shiro's voice made the teen jump slightly and he looked at the slightly older male, offering a small smile.

"It's been a long time since I've seen it.." He murmured, turning his attention back to the beautiful sight. Shiro's stomach churned as he was reminded of the fact that Lance was trapped in space for such a long time. They stood in a comfortable silence for a moment before Shiro placed a hand on the younger's shoulder, noting how he tensed.

"Do you need to talk about what happ-"

"No." Lance cut him off, voice hardening as he moved away from the other's touch. He felt bad for acting the way he was, but at the same time, he really didn't. Shiro could see Lance closing himself off and concern pooled in his gut.

"Lance, please." Shiro took a step closer to him before he moved away once more.

"Let's go back inside." Lance murmured before heading back to the building. Shiro let out a soft sigh and followed after a moment, closing the door behind him.

~~**\-----** ~~

Once entering the building, Lance finally took the time to look at the people in the room. When his eyes landed on Pidge, his heart stopped, dull eyes widening. He was quick to approach, ignoring the confused glances of his friends.

"Matty-?" Lance's voice cracked as he stared down at them, body trembling slightly. Pidge's eyes widened as well and before they could reply, Lance was quickly moving away. "No...You're not Matt.." There was an almost heartbroken glint in his eyes as he stared at them, slowly standing straight. Pidge still looked startled, staring up at him before clearing their throat and holding a hand out to the older teen.

"I'm...I'm Pidge." They stated, their smile wavering. Lance stared at their hand before taking it in his own metal one, shaking it. The look on his face made it obvious he didn't believe them and their stomach churned. Did he know the truth?

"Lance.." He murmured before quickly pulling his hand back and building his wall back up, standing straight.

"You guys should come look at this." Keith cut in, cutting through the thick tension in the air as he stood beside a board on the wall.

"What is that?" Lance questioned, brows furrowed slightly.

"I can't explain it, really. After you..." Keith trailed off before clearing his throat, looking away slightly. "I was kind of lost and found myself drawn out to this place. It's like something... some energy, was telling me to search."

"How did you even find the time to do this? And how have we never noticed you going missing?" Hunk crossed his arms over his chest, confusion obvious in his voice. Keith went to shoot a reply back, but Shiro cut in.

"For what?" Shiro questioned, quirking a brow as he stood beside Lance, watching Keith.

"Well, I didn't really know at the time... until I stumbled across this area. It's an outcropping of giant boulders with caves covered in these ancient markings. Each tells a slightly different story about a blue lion, but they all share clues leading to some event, some arrival happening last night. Then you showed up." Keith looked at Lance once more, pausing at the look on his frenemy's face. There was a distant look in his eyes and Keith moved to wave a hand in front of his face. Lance didn't really seem to think it through as a hand darted up and grabbed his wrist, eyes focusing once more. He was quick to release the other's wrist and moved back clearing his throat.

"Sorry, I, uh... _spaced_ out." His smile wavered slightly as he shot finger-guns the group's way. Hunk's disapproval was obvious.

"Lance, that's not-"

"I know, I know." He cut his best friend off with a wave of his hand before clearing his throat. 

"Hey, uh, Lance?" Pidge's voice cut through the air and caught the older male's attention, blue eyes trained on their smaller form. "Did anyone else from your crew make it out?" Their question hung heavy in the air as Lance silently stared at them. Then he looked away, a distant look in his eyes once more.

"I...don't know..All I remember is being captured by the Ga- er- the aliens and...the rest is kind of a blur.." He murmured, guilt pooling in his gut at the blatant lie, he remembered more than he wanted to, before looking at the younger teen once more. He could see the distress in their eyes and he took a step towards them, placing a gentle hand on their shoulder.

"Sorry to interrupt, but Lance, you mentioned aliens? Do you know where they are? Are they on their way here?" Lance could hear the panic in Hunk's voice and he looked at him slightly. "Are they coming for us? Like - where are they at this very moment?" The questioning pulled a long sigh from Lance and he moved his hands to massage his temples, squeezing his eyes shut. He could hear two voices murmuring, but he wasn't sure what they were saying.

"I don't know, buddy. I know they kept talking about something called...'Voltron'. I know it's a weapon and I know they want it, which is why we need to get it before them." Lance finally opened his eyes to look at the group, tensing under their intense gazes. Hunk cleared his throat and started going through Pidge's bag. 

"Well, last night, i was rummaging through Pidge's stuff-" He ignored the offended gasp that came from the younger teen. "-look, it's a picture of their girlfriend."

"Hey, give me that!" Hunk's grin was wiped off his face when Pidge snatched the picture out of his hand. Their eyes met Lance's and he was staring at them in awe, eyes large as he stared down at them. "Why were you going through my stuff?" Pidge snapped, quickly looking away from Lance and to Hunk, eyes narrowing as they snatched their bag away and put the picture back in it.

"I was looking for a candy bar!" Hunk shrugged before reaching into his back pocket and pulling out a small book. "Well, then I started reading their diary-" An affronted squawk left Pidge, their eyes wide and horrified. They were quick to jump up and snatch it from his hands, quickly going through it. "And I noticed the repeating series of numbers the aliens are searching for looks a lot like a Fraunhofer line."

"A what?" "Frown who?" Lance and Keith ended up blurting out at the same time. They shared a look before looking back at their friend.

"It's a number describing the emission spectrum of an element, only, this element doesn't exist on Earth. I thought it might be this Voltron. And I think can build a machine to look for it, like a Voltron Geiger counter." The group looked shocked for a moment before Lance grinned up at his friend, arms crossing over his chest.

"Hunk, you're a genius!" He exclaimed, a more real smile finally finding it's way onto his face. A relieved feeling flowed through Hunk at the sight of it.

"It's pretty fascinating, really." Hunk reached into his pocket once more and as he spoke, he unfolded a piece of graph paper he had pulled out. "The wavelength looks like this." Keith was quick to take the paper once he had seen the line on it.

"Give me that.." He murmured, ignoring the short huff Hunk let out as he held his hands up. Keith went over to the board and slowly held the paper up so it underneath a picture before slowly raising it so it was over a picture he had pinned up. Lowering the graph paper, the group noticed the similarities and shared a look.

~~**\-----** ~~

~~~~"Hey, Lance?" Hunk's voice caught the slightly shorter male off guard and he jumped slightly before quickly looking at his best friend.

"Yeah, Hunk?" He questioned, cocking his head to the side slightly. The group was headed to the rock formations that the graph Hunk made lined up to. The other male was staring at him silently, eyes flickering between his face to his hand. He slowly followed his gaze to the prosthetic arm and clenched his fist.

"I don't...want to be intruding, but.." His friend seemed to be hesitating and Lance let out a long sigh. He shrugged his coat off and held it out to him, waiting for Hunk to take it. Once he finally understood, he took the other's coat and watched as his friend began to pull his arm out of his long sleeve. He didn't take his shirt completely off, only having one arm out with the fabric still draping over the rest of his form. Hunk's stomach churned when he saw just how far up his arm the cyborg arm went, scars standing out where the metal met skin. The rest of the group had stopped and turned to face them, eyes widening in shock. Pidge raised a hand to cover their mouth, brown orbs wide as they followed the metal up to his bicep before their gaze moved to the rest of skin that was exposed. They could only see his right side and a little bit of his stomach since his organic hand was holding his shirt so it was hiding whatever else would be visible. Keith's eyes followed the scars littering what skin he could see, hands clenched tightly at his side.

"Lance.." Shiro's voice met the teen's ears and his gaze snapped towards him. Their eyes met and a horrible feeling pooled deep in Shiro's gut. He had been hoping he was imagining it when he noticed how dull his eyes seemed before, but holding eye contact with Lance like this just proved to him that the other seemed so...cut off. Lance was quick to pull his shirt back on and snatch his coat from Hunk, putting it back on.

"Come on, we need to go find this place, we don't have time for this." Lance murmured, starting to walk once more. When he passed Shiro, whom hadn't moved, he felt the other's hand take hold of his flesh one and looked at him slightly. Shiro stared at him for a moment before offering a shaky smile. Lance stared at him silently before sighing softly, gently squeezing his hand. "Come on, Shiro." The older male nodded slightly and started to walk with him, though he still hadn't let go of his hand. Lance wasn't going to complain for now.

~~**\-----** ~~

 Once the group had reached the area, they stared at it silently for a long moment.

"Okay, I admit it. This is super freaky." Lance stated, looking at the others. Hunk gaze was glued to his little machine when he gasped.

"I'm getting a reading." He stated before quickly beginning to walk, the others right on his heels. When they reached the cave, an awed sound left Lance that was followed by a soft 'whoa' from both Pidge and Hunk.

"What are these..?" Shiro questioned, looking around at the carvings. 

"These are the lion carvings I was telling you about. They're everywhere around here." Keith stated, lightly running his fingers across the carvings before moving to stand by Shiro. 

Lance blue orbs stared at the carvings, an odd feeling tugging at him. Something was rumbling in the back of his mind, urging him to touch the carvings. Lifting his prosthetic hand, he ran his fingers across the carvings before brushing the dirt off of one. A startled gasp left him when the carvings began to glow a striking shade of blue, eyes growing large. 

"They've never done that before.." Keith murmured, looking around at them. Lance was in awe, the carvings were so beautiful. When he parted his lips to express his thoughts, the ground beneath them began to glow that same blue and crumble. Before any of them knew it, the ground was caving out from under them, earning a startled yell from the group. Honestly, if it wasn't for the fact that he's experienced weird shit than this, he'd probably be as terrified as Hunk and Pidge seemed to be. 

The collision with the ground knocked the air out of Lance and he gasped before groaning, slowly pushing himself up. When his eyes landed on the thing in front of him, a soft gasp fell passed his lips. 

"They are everywhere.."

"Is that it? Is this the Voltron?" Pidge questioned, staring up at the robotic lion. 

"It must be.." Shiro murmured, eyes locking onto the blank eyes of the lion. 

"This is what's been causing all of this crazy energy out here."Keith slowly began to approach it, the others quickly following him. "Looks like there's a force field around it."

Lance moved in sort of a zig-zag way, eyes narrowing up at the lion. 

"Is it just me, or is this thing watching them?" He questioned, frowning when no one else was experiencing what he was. "Yeah, uh...the eyes are totally following me." He murmured, meeting the lion's eyes and tensing slightly when that rumbling sounded in the back of his mind once more. Keith seemed to pick up speed, stopping once he was right in front of it.

"I wonder how we get through this.." He murmured, placing his hands flat against the force field. Lance walked up beside him, hands on his hips.

"Maybe you just.." He trailed off, having lifted a hand to touch the blue shield and hesitating, pulling it back slightly. He was quiet for a moment before that sound rumbled in the back of his mind once more, almost like a purr. Stealing his nerves, he raised his hand once more. "Maybe you just have to knock?" He questioned before tapping on it with his flesh hand. He yelped when the force field seemed to react, a swirl of blue following his hand. 

The lion's eyes began to glow a bright yellow as the force field disappeared, the markings beneath it glowing bright blue. The group stared up at it, eyes wide as the ground shook. An image of five lions flooded their minds, the lions coming together to form a large robot. 

Everything calmed and they paused, staring at the lion silently.

"Woah.." Lance, Keith, and Pidge murmured, staring at it. 

"Everyone saw that, right?" Lance looked back at them slightly before looking back at the lion. 

"Voltron is a robot!" Hunk suddenly yelled from his spot on the ground. "Voltron is a huge, huge, awesome robot!" 

"And this thing is only one part of it! I wonder where the rest of them are." Pidge exclaimed, looking at the group. 

"I think this might be what they're looking for.." Lance murmured, eyes wide. 

"Incredible.." Keith murmured, staring up at it. 

The lion's head lowered in front of Lance, the mouth opening and dropping a ramp for him to climb. He was hesitant, looking back at the others before that same purr as before sounded in the back of his mind. It was comforting this time, beckoning him to enter the lion. Determined now, he climbed into it and went to the cockpit, slowly sitting in the seat. A startled noise left him when the seat moved on its own to the control panel. He could hear the others coming up behind him as the control panel came to life. 

A laugh bubbled up from his chest when the screen showed the cave in front of him, eyes widening slightly as he grinned. 

"All right, very nice!" He exclaimed, carefully resting his hands on the dash.

"Okay, guys, I feel the need to point out, just so we're all, you know, aware. We are in some kind of futuristic alien cat head right now." Hunk's statement pulled a quiet chuckle out of Lance before it was cut off by louder, deeper purring than before.

"Woah, did you guys just hear that?" He questioned, looking back at them. 

"Hear what?" Keith questioned, quirking a brow slightly. Lance looked back at the controls, brows furrowing. 

"I think to its talking to me.." He murmured, leaning down to get a better look at it. He raised his prosthetic hand, pressing what seemed to be buttons, and the lion stood, a loud roar leaving it and pulling startled yells from Hunk and Pidge. Controls pulled up in front of Lance and he looked at them slightly before raising both hands to take hold of them. 

"All right.." A grin slowly spread across his face. "Let's try this!" 


End file.
